Cases of flu found at YMCA camp in Pamlico County

Two counselors at a YMCA camp in Pamlico County have influenza A, County Health Director Devin Madden said Tuesday.

Madden said the pair, and 10 other campers who exhibited flu symptoms, had been sent home. The swine flu, or H1N1 virus, is a strain of influenza A, but Madden said the campers and counselors were not tested specifically for that strain.

Renee McCoy, spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Human Services, said that while the state is not tracking individual reports from summer camps, reports of H1N1are becoming more common.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that summer camps prevent the spread of flu by focusing on early identification of ill campers and staff, keeping those people at home or away from others and practicing good hygiene.